Coin container with reversible filler member



Dec. Z3, 1954 A. J. cuNl COIN CONTAINER WITH REVERSIBLE FILLER MEMBERFiled June 6, 1949 2 sneek-sheet 1 M 2g/ n` JNVENToR.. HL B EE T J. CIM/Dec. 2l, 1954 A. J. cUNl com CONTAINER WITH REVERSIBLE EILLER MEMBER 2Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 6, 1949 JNVENToR. AME/@TJ WA/f United StatesPatent Oiitice COIN CON'IANER WITH REVERSIBLE FHLLER IVIEMBER Albert J.Cnni, Cincinnati, Qhio Application June 6, 1949, Serial No. 97,387Claims. (Cl. 20G-0.82)

This invention relates to improvements in containers for coinsparticularly wrapped coins or coin rolls.

Coins as is well known are arranged in rolls of each denomination therebeing a specific amount of each coin per roll. These coin rolls are thenshipped to various places such as from the main bank to branch banks,between banks, and from the Federal Reserve depot to member banks.

In the past, coin shipments have generally been made in canvas bags inwhich, frequently, due to the handling thereof as well as the weight ofthe coins, the rolls were broken permitting an intermixing or minglingof the coins whether of the same denomination or of differentdenominations. It was therefore necessary for the receiver to sort andcount the individual coins to be sure he was receiving the amount he wasintended to receive.

The coin container of the present invention overcomes these dillicultiessince the coins, in rolls, are stacked against displacement andtherefore against damage or breakage to the wrapper. The coin containerof the present invention may' further be provided with one or more sidesof a transparent quality so that the contents of the container can bereadily noted and observed. The container of the present inventionfurther lends itself to the use as a coin tray from which a bank telleror the like can dispense coin rolls and at the same time readily storethe coins by simply storing the container with its coins in the safe orvault provided for this purpose at night and other times when the coinsare to be stored.

Due to the different diameters of coins of different denominations allsizes of coins cannot be readily stacked in a given area certain sizesaccommodating themselves completely in a given area while other sizesrequire more or less area, wherefore the container of the presentinvention isl made to be readily adapted to accommodate all sizes ofcoins for shipping as well as dispensing purposes.

It is therefore the principal object of thel present inventionV toprovide a container for wrapped coins that. may be used as a shippingcontainer and individual coin roll dispenser.

Another object of this invention is the provision of a container foraccomplishing the foregoing object and in which the contents can beaccurately noted without opening the same.

A further object of this invention is to provide a container in whichall sizesf of coins, that is, each denomination of coin, can be properlystacked so that no disarrangement and breakage of the rolls and wrappersoccur.

A still further and specitic object of this invention is to providey acontainer for coin rolls in which the rolls are similarly stackedagainst movement and having means to take up the overall difference indimension of the coin` rolls whereby containers of the sameI externaldimensions may be employed and wherein the said makeup or ller means isemployed with each size of coin.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention should be readilyapparent by reference' to the following specification considered inconjunction with the accompanying drawings forming a part thereof and itis to be understood that any modiiications may be: made in the exactstructural details there shown and described, within the scope of theappended claims', without departing from or exceeding the spirit .of theinvention.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a perspective view of a container formed of pressed or stampedsheet metal and embodying the princlplesof the present invention.

Fig. 2 1 s a top plan view of the container of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 1s a vertical sectional View through the contamer as seen fromline 3-3 on Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a View similar to Fig. 3 but with the filler member 1n asecond position for accommodating coins of sizes different from thataccommodated in Fig. 3.

.F1g. 5 is a vertical sectional view, at right angles to Fig. 3, throughthe container as seen from linel 5-5 on Fig. 2.

Fig 6 is a horizontal sectional View through the container as seen fromline 6 6 on Fig. 4.

Fig. 7 is a View similar to Fig. 6 taken on line 77 on Fig. 3.

Fig. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view adjacent the lock orseal as seen from line 8-8 on Fig. 2.

Throughout the several views of the drawings similar referencecharacters are employed to denote the same or similar parts.

The coinV container, as disclosed in the drawings", is formed of sheetmetal and comprises an outer, substantially U-shaped, shell providing: aback 20 and outer side members 21 and 22. The back 20 terminates at itsupper end in a flange 23 while the bottom of the back is formed into alongitudinally extending channel 24 with a ilange 25 at its free end.The channel Z4 forms a foot or support for the back of the container.`The shell sides 2l and 22 respectively have their upper ends formed asinwardly projecting anges 26 and 27 each in the plane of the top flange23 of the shell or container back 26. The said sides 21 and 22 at theirlower ends, similar to the back 2li, are formed, respectively, aschannels 28 and 29 with a ilange 3) and 3i at the free ends thereof. Theshell sides vchannels 23 and 29 form feet or supports for the containerin the same manner as the back channel 24.

Disposed between the shell sides and back and resting on the bottomflanges 25, 30 and 31 is the container bottom 32 which has its rear edgedown turned to form a flange 33 that contacts the back 20 within thechannel 24 and is secured in position in any suitable or desirablemanner. The bottom 32 has its side edges similarly upturned to formllanges 34 and 35 which are in face contact with the container shellsides 21 and 22 and are secured in position in any suitable or desirablemanner such as by spot welding or the like. The container bottom 32rests on the shell sides flanges 3() and 31 and may be secured inposition again by spot Welding or the like. The bottom 32 has itsforward end down turned to form an upwardly projecting channel 36 whichis in alignment with similar inwardly projecting channels 37 and 38formed at the front ends of the shell sides 21 and 22. These channels36, 37 and 38 form in effect a groove in which, as will later be madeclear, is disposed the front or cover for the container.

Extending within and between the container shell back and sides, at theupper ends thereof, is the container top 39 which has its rear edgedownturned as a flange 40 in face contact with the container back 20through which the said top may be secured in position by spot weldingc-r the like. The sides of the top 39 are similarly downturned asflanges 41 and 42 in face contact with the sides 21 and 22 and securedby spot welding or the like. The top 39 underlies the back and sidellanges 23, 26 and 27 for additional spot welding for fastening theparts in operative positions. The front edge of the top 39 is short ofthe front edge of the sides 21 and 22 and in fact is in alignment withthe inner edge of the groove formed by the channels 36, 37 and 38 andthe said top front edge is downturned to form a flange 43 and act as aguide to the channels 36, 37 and 38.

The container shell sides 21 and 22 are reinforced by inner side members44 and 45 each of which is pro vided with anges at its vertical andhorizontal edges for engagement with the container back, and shell sides21 and 22 for inwardly spacing the same the desired amount. The rearflanges 46 and 47, respectively, of inner sides 44 and 45, extend towardone another as clearly illus.- trated in Figs. 6 and 7 for a purposesubsequently to be Patented nec. 21, 1954,

made clear. The inner side members 44 and 45 are secured in position byspot welding or the like. The space between the shell sides 21 and 22and their respective inner side members 44 and 45 -is utilized toaccommodate reinforcing and strengthening members 48 and 49 to affordample strength for the pressure of the coins against the said sides.

The container top 39 is illustrated in Fig. 5 as provided therebeneathwith a reinforcing or strengthening structure 50 comprising a centralsection in face contact with the under surface of the container top 39and having longitudinally thereof channels for resisting any bending orbowing tendency in the said top 39.

The container bottom 32 is provided adjacent one wall, side wall 22-45for example, with a shallow depression or groove 51 receiving therein amember hereinafter referred to as a filler member 52. The filler member52 comprises a panel 53 having extending from its upper end a flange 54and from its lower end a similar flange 55, see Figs. 3 and 4. Thefiller member panel 53 is provided on one of its vertical edges with aflange 56 while its other vertical edge is free of any flange, see Figs.6 and 7. The groove or depression 51 in the container bottom 32 is of awidth substantially equal to the depth of the flanges 54, 55 and 56 plusthe thickness of the metal and forms a groove or channel for receivingand accommodating the filler member 52. The top reinforcing member 50has its end adjacent the container side wall 22-45 short of said sidewall and, substantially, in vertical alignment with the inner end of thechannel or groove 51 thereby providing a shoulder 57 for the upper endof the filler member 52 and cooperates with said channel edge inproviding an abutment and guide therefor. The said filler member 52 isadapted to be utilized in reverse positions as illustrated in Figs. 6and 7 for purposes hereinafter to be made clear.

The ller member 52 is illustrated in Figs. 3 and 7 in position with thefiller member panel 53 in face contact with the container side wallinner wall member 45 and in position in Figs. 4 and 6 with said panel 53spaced from the side wall member 45 a distance equal to the depth of itsflanges 54, 55 and 56. With the filler member 52 in the positionillustrated in Figs. 4 and 6 the vertical edge of the panel 53 devoid ofa ange is resting on the free end of the side wall member rear ange 47and is thereby being supported while the ller member illustrated inFigs. 3 and 7 is shown with the vertical edge of the panel devoid of aange at the front or open end of the container and with the flange, atthe other vertical edge thereof, in face contact with the aforementionedside wall flange 47.

` With the filler member 52 in the position of Figs. 3 and 7 the spacetransversely of the container between the opposed surfaces of the sidewall inner member 44 and filler panel 53 is adapted to receive on thecontainer bottom 32 ten rolls of pennies or one cent pieces in ahorizontal direction While the height of the container affords space forten layers of said rolls, this being illustrated in solid lines in saidFigs. 3 and 7 and indicated by the reference numeral S. This space willalso accommodate nine rolls of nickels or five cent pieces in ahorizontal directionand nine layers of rolls in a vertical directionillustrated in Figs. 3 and 7 in dotted lines and indicated by thereference numeral 59, or this space will accommodate eight rolls ofquarters or twenty-tive cent pieces in said horizontal direction andeight layers of rolls in a vertical direction illustrated in said Figs.3 and 7 by phantom or dot and dash lines and indicated b y the referencenumeral 60. lt will be noted that the horizontal rows of each of saidcoins is substantially completely utilized so that no relative movementbetween the coin rolls is possible while the vertical row stops short ofthe top reinforcing member and particularly the reinforcing channelsthereof thereby providing a space 61 above the coins and which space isutilized as linger room when desired to extract a coin roll or rollsfrom the container. lt will be noted, however, that this space isinsufficient to permit of a dislodgment of a coin roll so that the saidrolls are prevented from movement that will result in damage thereto.

By reversing the filler member from the position illustrated in Figs. 3and 7 to the position illustrated in Figs. 4 and 6 the transversedimension of the container is reduced bv so much as is taken up by theflanges 54, and 56. This reduced space between the sid@ Wall lunarmember 44 and the filler member panel 53 is such that ten rolls of dimesor ten cent pieces can be-accommo-v dated with substantially no spacetherebetween while the height of the container permits a vertical stackof ten rolls of said dimes or ten cent pieces which are illustrated inFigs. 4 and 6 in solid lines and indicated by the reference numeral 62;this same space will accurately accommodate in a horizontal directionsix rolls of one-half dollars or fifty cent pieces and will permit sixlayers of rolls, all as illustrated in Figs. 4 and 6 by dotted lines andindicated by the reference numeral 63. A space somewhat greater thanthat above the coin rolls in Fig. 3 is provided in Fig. 4, but thisspace is insucient to permit dislodgment of the coin rolls while at thesame time permitting the linger room for withdrawal of the coin rollsfrom the container.

The depth of the container is such as to accommodate the longest roll,namely, the one cent rolls as shown in Fig. 7, and which depth willtherefor accommodate the rolls of all coins. Since one-half dollars aremade up in rolls of twenty, or ten dollars worth, they arecornparatively short and in fact of substantially one-half the length ofthe pennies wherefor two layers or vertical rolls of one-half dollarscan be accommodated in the preferred size of container such asillustrated in Fig. 6. By this construction there is insufficient roomprovided between the forward edge of the coin rolls and the innersurface of the container closure member or door 64 to permit dislodgmentthereof and therefore damage to the rolls or their wrappers.

In order that the filler member can be readily removed from thecontainer and inserted in position, the panel 53 is provided with one ormore apertures 91 into which a finger of the user may be placed forpulling the filler member from the container or pushing same thereinto.It is understood that any other or desirable means may Re employed forassisting in positioning the filler mem- The cover or door 64 is'adapted to be slid downwardly in the groove provided by channels 36, 37and 38 as above pointed out. This cover or door 64 is preferably formedof transparent material such for example as that of resin or syntheticresin condensate and generally designated as plastic which is tough andnot easily broken. By making the door transparent the contents of thecontainer can be readily observed and the rolls therein counted andwhich rolls are readily identified as to the denomination of cointherein both by their size and the usual color of the wrapper.

For shipping purposes it is desired to seal the cover in position toavoid pilfering or other tampering with the contents wherefor, as seenin Fig. 8, the container top 39 is provided with an aperture orapertures 65 which are in alignment with an aperture 66 in the cover 64when said cover is in its fully closed position and through whichaligned apertures is passed a tie member such as a wire 67. The ends ofthe wire 67 are brought forwardly of the cover 64 and passed through asuitable seal 68 to be irremovable therefrom necessitating the tie andseal to be broken in order to remove the container front or cover 64.

To permit of easy handling of the containers, whether full or empty, thetop 39 has secured thereto a normally retractable or collapsible handle69, conveniently in the form of a bail, that has its ends conventionallyhinged beneath brackets 70. It will be understood that any suitable ordesirable handle may be provided to afford easy transportation of thecontainer.

As was noted above, the container may be utilized in the bank or otherplace as a coin dispensing tray which would require the complete removalof the cover or front 64 and in order to conveniently dispose of saidcover or front 64 it isv arranged in face contact with and exteriorly ofthe container back 20, illustrated at 71 in phantom lines in Fig. 5. Thecover is retained in this position by a spring latch 72 hingedlyconnected at 73 to the container top 39 so that it can be swung to itsinoperative position when the container front is in closed position, asshown in Fig. 1, and can be swung to its cover holding operativeposition, as illustrated in Fig. 5.

In order that a plurality of containers may be stacked one on top of theother, the container top 39 has up. wardly extending therefrom aplurality of bumpers or;

74 which are of a height to have their upper supports the latch 72 andat the surface above the handle 69 and same time of a heightsubstantially equal to the depth of the back channel 24, side channels28 and 29 and front channel 36 so that said bumpers or supports 74 arewithin said container feet or supporting channels to engage thecontainer bottom 32 of the supported container.

While the container has been described in detail it is to be understoodthat the exact constructional details are not controlling, the mainfeatures of the container being the filler member capable of use inreverse positions for varying or changing the interior transversedimension of the container to accommodate all denominations of coins inrolls, the transparent front or cover whereby the container contents canbe readily and accurately observed without removing the front or cover,the provision of means for stacking or vertically disposing containerson one another with security and a container for all sizes of coinswhich may be utilized for shipping as well as dispensing purposes.

From the foregoing it will now be appreciated that there has beenprovided a container for coin rolls that can be readily utilized as ashipping anddispensing container and at the same time adapted for coinsof all de nominations without removing parts of the container which maybe lost or left behind, as would be the case if the container were madeto accommodate a given group of coins and require the insertion of thefiller only when a second group of coins' were to be accommodated.

It will also be note dfrom the foregoing that there has been provided acontainer that accomplishes the objects initially set forth.

What is claimed is:

l. A container of the class described comprising a back, sides, top andbottom projecting from said back, a depressed portion in the containerbottom adjacent one container side with said one container side andbottom depressed portion forming in effect a groove in said bottom, areinforcing member secured to and depending from the underside of thecontainer top and extending longitudinally thereof between saidcontainer sides with said reinforcing member having an endstopping shortof said aforementioned one container side to form an abutment dependingfrom the container top spaced from the aforementioned one containersid'eand with said abutment and container side forming in effect agroove in said top, said top and bottom grooves being in verticalalignment, a cooperating filler member including a panel havingsubstantially parallel outer surfaces between the container top andbottom and' mounting means on and projecting from the ends of the fillermember of substantially the same width as the width of and received insaid top and bottom grooves, and with the outer surfaces of theprojecting mounting means in sliding engagement with the sides of thetopl and bottom grooves. said projecting mounting means having one outersurface thereof and one of the panel surfaces in a given plane and saidprojecting mounting means having the other outer surface thereof and theother panel surface offset from one another, said filler member throughits mounting means being selectively reversely positioned within thecontainer so that with the ller member in one position it has thesurface of its panel that is in the plane of the said one outer surfaceof the mounting means in contact with the said one container side andits other surface spaced a given distance from the remaining cabinetside whereby a plurality of rolls of wrapped coins of a givendenomination may be arranged in rows of rolls between the said fillermember and the container side with said rows stacked one row above theother with the first row on the container bottom with substantially nofree movement between the rolls in the rows, and with the filler memberin its reversed position having the surface of its panel that is in theplane of the said one outer surface of the mounting means remote fromsaid one container side and spaced from the remaining container side adistance different from the first spacing whereby a plurality of rows ofwrapped coins of another denomination may be arranged in rows of rollsbetween said filler member and the remaining container side with saidrows stacked one row above the other with the first row on the containerbottom with substantially no free movement between the rolls in therows'.

2. A container of the class described comprising a back, sides, top andbottom projecting from said back, a depressed portion in the containerbottom adjacent one container side with said one container side andbottom depressed portion forming in effect a groove in said bottom, areinforcing member secured to and depending from the underside of thecontainer top and extending longitudinally thereof between saidcontainer sides with said reinforcing member having an end stoppingshort of said aforementioned one container side to form an abutmentdepending from the container top spaced from the aforementioned onecontainer side and with said abutment and container side forming ineffect agroove in said top, said top and bottom grooves being invertical alignment, a cooperating' filler member including a panelhaving substantially parallel outer surfaces between the container topand bottom and mounting means on and projecting from the ends of thefiller member of substantially the same width as the width of andreceved in said top and bottom grooves, and with theouter surfaces ofthe projecting mounting means in sliding engagement with the sides ofthe top and bottom grooves, said projecting mounting means having' oneouter surface thereof and one of the panel surfaces in a given plane andsaid projecting mounting means having the other outer surface thereofand the other panel surface offset from one another', said filler memberthrough its mounting means being selectively reversely positioned withinthe container so that with the filler member in one position it has thesurface of its panel that is in the plane of the said one outer surfaceof the mounting means in contact with the said one container side andits other surface spaced a given distance from the remaining cabinetside whereby a plurality of rolls of wrapped coins of a givendenomination may be arranged in rows of rolls between the said fillermember and the container side with said rows stacked one row above theother with the first row on the container bottom with substantially nofree movement between the rolls in the rows, and' with the filler memberin its reversed position having the surface of its panel that is in theplane of the said one outer surface of the mounting means remote fromsaid one container side and spaced from the remaining container side adistance different from the first spacing whereby a plurality of rows ofwrapped coins of another denomination may be arranged in: rows of rollsbetween said filler member and the remaining container side with saidrows stacked one row' above the other with the first row on thecontainer bottom with substantially no free movement' between the rollsin the rows, said container sides and bottom having portions projectingforwardly of the top, channel-like groovesformed in said projectingportions of the container sides and bottom, andV a closure membersldably received in said channel-like grooves for closing the container.

3. A container of the class described comprising a back, sides, top andbottom projecting from said back, a depressed portion in the containerbottom adjacent one container side with said one container side andbottom depressed portion forming in effect a groove in said bottom, areinforcing member secured to and depending from the underside of thecontainer top and extending longitudinally thereof between saidcontainer sides with said reinforcing member having an end stoppingshort of said aforementioned one container side to form an abutmentdepending from the container top spaced from the aforementionedcontainer one side with said abutment and container side forming ineffect a groove in said top, said grooves in said top and bottom beingin vertical alignment, and a ller member including a panel havingsubstantially parallel outer surfaces with a flange projecting fromthree sides thereof from one panel surface laterally of the panel andbeyond its other surface, said flanges each having a width substantiallyequal to the width of, and received in, said opposed top and bottomgrooves for positioning and retaining the panel in position, said fillermember being adapted to be selectively reversely positioned in said topand bottom opposed grooves and when in one position having the panelsurface from which the flange projects in contact with the said onecontainer side to give said container an effective transverse dimensionand when said filler member is in its reverse position having said onesurface of its panel from which the flange projects remote from said onecontainer side to give said container a different effective transversedimension to, in each instance, accommodate wrapped coins of differentdenominations with said coins arranged in rows of rolls between saidller member and the remaining container side with said rolls stacked onerow above the other with the irst row on the container bottom withsubstantially no free movement between the rolls in the rows.

4. A container of the class described comprising a back, sides, top andbottom projecting from said back, a depressed portion in the containerbottom adjacent one container side with said one container side andbottom depressed portion forming in effect a groove in said bottom, areinforcing member secured to and depending from the underside of thecontainer top and extending longitudinally thereof between saidcontainer sides with said reinforcing member having an end stoppingshort of said aforementioned one container side to form an abutmentdepending from the container top spaced from the aforementionedcontainer one side with said abutment and container side forming ineffect a groove in said top, said grooves in said top and bottom beingin vertical alignment, a filler member including a panel havingsubstantially parallel outer surfaces with a flange projecting fromthree sides thereof from one panel surface laterally of the panel andbeyond its other surface, said anges each having a width substantiallyequal to the width of, and received in, said opposed top and bottomgrooves for positioning and retaining the panel in position, said llermember being adapted to be selectively reversely positioned in said topand bottom opposed grooves and when in one position having the panelsurface from which the flanges project in contact with the said onecontainer side to give said container an effective transversedimension'and when said ller member is in its reverse position havingsaid one surface of its panel from which the anges project remote fromsaid one container side to give said container a different effectivetransverse dimension to, in each instance, accommodate wrapped coins ofdifferent denominations with said coins arranged in rows of rollsbetween said iiller member and the remaining container side with saidrolls stacked one row above the other with the rst row on the containerbottom with substantially no free movement between the rolls in therows, the container sides and bottom having portions projectingforwardly of the top, channel-like grooves formed in said projectingportions of the container sides and bottom, and a removable closure forthe container disposed in said sides and bottom channel-like grooves.

5. A container of the class described comprising a back, sides, top andbottom projecting from said back` a depressed portion in the containerbottom adjacent one container side with said one container side andbottom depressed portion forming in effect a groove in said bottom, areinforcing member secured to and depending from the underside of thecontainer top and extending longitudinally thereof between saidcontainer sides with said reinforcing member having an end stoppingshort of said aforementioned one container side to form an abutmentdepending from the container top spaced from the aforementionedcontainer one side with said abutment and container side forming ineffect a groove 1n said top, said grooves in said top and bottom beingin vertical alignment, a filler member including a panel havingsubstantially parallel outer surfaces with a flange projecting fromthree sides thereof from one panel surface laterally of the panel andbeyond its other surface, said anges each having a width substantiallyequal to the width of, and received in, said Opposed top and bottorngrooves for positioning and retaining the panel in pos1tion, said fillermember being adapted to be selectively reversely positioned in said topand bottom opposed grooves and when in one position having the panelsurface from which the flanges project in contact with the said onecontainer side to give said container an effective transverse dimensionand when said filler member is in its reverse position having said onesurface of its panel from which the anges project remote from said onecontainer side to give said container a different effective transversedimension to, in each instance, accommodate wrapped coins of diiferentdenominations with said coins arranged in rows of rolls between saidfiller member and the remaining container side with said rolls stackedone row above the other with the first row on the container bottom withsubstantially no free movement between the rolls in the rows, thecontainer sides and bottom having portions projecting forwardly of thetop, channel-like grooves formed in said projecting portions of thecontainer sides and bottom, and a removable transparent closure memberreceived in the container sides and bottom channel-like grooves forclosing the container and permitting an observation of the contents ofthe container while the closure member is in its closed position.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 210,345 Mayo et al. Nov. 26, 1878 926,537 Bagley June 29, 19091,144,835 Gibson June 29, 1915 1,186,642 Alamy June 13, 1916 1,207,988Olmsted Dec. 12, 1916 1,256,241 McGinnis Feb. 12, 1918 1,280,918Westbrook Oct. 8, 1918 1,313,003 Meklemburg Aug. 12, 1919 1,484,044Toborg Feb. 19, 1924A 1,555,533 Vance Sept. 29, 1925 1,928,512 SwiftSept. 26, 1933 2,023,154 Trotter Dec. 3, 1935 FOREIGN PATENTS NumberCountry Date 23,393 Great Britain A. D. 1912

